OUTSIDE BAGHOUZ, Syria (AP) U.S.-backed Syrian forces fighting the Islamic State group handed over more than 150 Iraqi members of the group to Iraq, an Iraqi security official said Thursday, marking the biggest repatriation from Syria of captured militants so far.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 14:19:24 -0500

A statue of a priest who was leading figure in the movement that toppled Communism in Poland was removed by protesters, who accused the Catholic Church of neglecting accusations that he sexually abused minors. The statue of Henryk Jankowski in central Gdansk - the birthplace of the Solidarity movement - was lifted from its plinth overnight by three men who then handed themselves in to police, Gdansk police spokeswoman Karina Kaminska said on Thursday.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 07:57:08 -0500

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) U.S. prosecutors have charged an IRS employee with leaking banking records of President Donald Trump's former personal lawyer Michael Cohen that flagged suspicious activity, the U.S. attorney's office in San Francisco said Thursday.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 19:47:36 -0500

(Bloomberg) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin said honest business people shouldnt have to live under constant fear of criminal prosecution, days after the arrest of one of the countrys top foreign investors.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 08:21:10 -0500

Canada is looking to quickly bring over siblings of a Syrian refugee distraught over the loss of her seven children in a Halifax house fire, the prime minister said Thursday. "The immigration minister is seized with this particular case," Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said when asked if Ottawa would fast-track the immigration or asylum process to bring the woman's brothers to Canada in order to provide her with family support. The family was among tens of thousands of Syrian refugees welcomed by Canada over the past four years.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 13:18:33 -0500

Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela's president, ordered the border with Brazil to be closed and said he was considering doing the same with Colombia as US aid stacked up on both frontiers on Thursday night. Mr Maduro dismissed efforts to deliver basic food and medicine as a "provocation" as opposition groups were heading to the border to carry the aid packages through in defiance of the regime. Juan Guaido, the opposition leader now recognised as Venezuela's legitimate president by 52 countries, was headed to the frontier with Colombia in a motorcade on Thursdayto personally oversee the aid delivery. Political analysts say Saturday's border showdown is less about solving Venezuela's needs and more about testing the military's loyalty towards Maduro and the socialist regime by daring it to turn the aid away. On Wednesday, Maduro's socialist administration said it had closed the country's maritime border with the Dutch Caribbean islands of Aruba, Curacao and Bonaire, after Curacao's government said it would help store aid destined for Venezuela. Mr Guaido left Caracas for the border to personally oversee the delivery of US aid Credit: FEDERICO PARRA/AFP Mr Guaido was due to arrive across the border from Cucuta, the Colombian town that has become a focal point for the standoff, with pallets of aid mounting up and a concert organised by Richard Branson due to take place on Friday. Residents, who are already feeling the strain of hosting tens of thousands of Venezuelan refugees, are concerned about the safety of the show, and its provocative location on the Tienditas bridge that connects the two hostile countries. Furthermore, many told The Telegraph that the planned delivery of humanitarian aid on Saturday has made the already-tense city even more fraught. Colombia expelled five Venezuelans on Wednesday from the Colombian border town of Cucuta for "carrying forward activities which attack citizen security and social order". Johana, a 33-year-old archivist, said she was worried how Venezuelas military would react to the show, which begins at 10am local time (3pm GMT) and runs until 5pm (10pm GMT). I think the location of the concert is really dangerous, because Maduro is capable of doing anything, she said. The stage for Richard Branson's concert was being erected on the bridge from Colombia to Venezuela Credit: SCHNEYDER MENDOZA/AFP Brian, a 27-year-old employee of the Bavaria beer company, said he was looking forward to the show, but shared Johanas concern about the venue. Mr Guaido, the self-declared interim president of Venezuela, has insisted that the aid must be allowed to pass. Mr Maduro has ordered his troops not to let it through, and announced that Venezuela will instead deliver aid to Colombia. The presidents of Colombia, Chile, Panama and Paraguay will be in Cucuta, to observe the efforts, largely carried out by thousands of volunteers, who in the two days leading up to Saturday'sshowdown gathered outside military barracks, urging the soldiers to disobey Mr Maduro. Sir Richard has said he hopes 250,000 people will attend the free gig, which features megastars such as multi-Grammy-winning Juanes, Venezuelan veteran Ricardo Montaner, Spanish singer-songwriter Alejandro Sanz and Mexican rockers Mana. Venezuela - Concert locations Doing an event as big as this, with so many people, is quite risky, because we dont know what the reaction will be from the other side of the border, he said. I really think the concert is inconvenient, given the tensions at the moment. At the least, they shouldnt do it on the bridge. Noelia, 33, an insurance consultant, said she was too frightened to attend, and worried about a response from Mr Maduros troops or Colombias own guerrilla force, the ELN, which backs Mr Maduro. I think its a good tool to show Maduro that the whole world is tired of him, she said. But Im not going to go, because I dont think its safe. Firstly, because of the number of people who are going. And secondly, because we dont know what Mr Maduro will do in response. Mr Maduro has already announced that his government will hold a rival Hands Off Venezuela concert, staged 300 metres away on the other side of the bridge. His artists are yet to be announced, and a Colombian radio station reported that musicians were being offered up to $7 million to perform during a three-day festival, running from Friday to Sunday. It said several had declined to perform. And Pink Floyds co-founder Roger Waters, who has strongly opposed any intervention in Venezuela, attacked Sir Richard's concert and said it was little more than a political stunt. It has nothing to do with humanitarian aid at all, the 75-year old Waters said. It has to do with Richard Branson having bought the US saying, We have decided to take over Venezuela, for whatever our reasons may be. Sir Richard denied that the show was political, and emphasised that the musicians were not being paid. The British billionaire, who has been following events in Venezuela closely from his Caribbean isle of Necker, 500 miles directly north of Caracas, said he felt he simply had to do something. Support for Venezuela leadership "Venezuela sadly has not become the utopia that the current administration of Venezuela or the past administration were hoping for, and that has resulted in a lot of people literally dying from lack of medical help", he said. "I think it will draw attention to the problem on a global basis." He added that he hopes the event is a joyous occasion. And some in Cucuta were certainly looking forward to the show. The mayor of the city of 650,000, Cesar Omar Rojas, has declared today (FRI) to be a holiday, with state employees given the day off to attend and schools closed, to free up the roads for transport to the site. Were going to send a message to the world that there should be no walls or barriers between two brotherly neighbours, which prevent reconciliation, or stop help from arriving, said Luis Carlos Diaz, a 47-year-old customer service specialist. Through music we will show Maduro that the world does not agree with him. It will be a warning to all of those new regimes that are growing around the world, we will tell them that is it not ok to starve their people.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 13:16:36 -0500

SANTA ANA, Calif. (AP) Investigators searched for decades for the killer of an 11-year-old girl who disappeared while walking home from summer school in a case that gripped a California seaside community.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 20:39:49 -0500

Hoda Muthana, 24, traveled to Syria over four years ago to join Islamic State, also known as ISIS. In media interviews this week from a detention camp in Syria, Muthana said she was sorry for her actions and wanted to return to her family in Alabama with her toddler son. Pompeo said Muthana was not a U.S. citizen and would not be admitted into the United States.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 19:28:17 -0500

While winter weather has battered the east for the past couple days, the National Weather Service said up to 3 inches of snow will fall in the outskirts of the Las Vegas Valley.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 07:20:40 -0500

The political stalemate that ended last month will reduce first-quarter revenue by $60 million as the aftereffects lingered on, Southwest said in a regulatory filing Wednesday. With more of first quarter under our belt now, and a higher percentage of March bookings in place, we feel like we are at the point where we can reasonably quantify the total impact from the shutdown, Southwest said by email.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 17:04:34 -0500

To become eligible for Social Security disability benefits, you must be unable to engage in substantial gainful activity. "It is possible to qualify for Social Security disability benefits and still work in a limited capacity," says Nick Ortiz, a board-certified Social Security disability attorney and owner of Ortiz Law Firm in Pensacola, Florida. Read on for a look at what's involved with Social Security disability benefits, as well as the rules related to working while receiving benefits.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 10:35:44 -0500

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Feb. 27, Netanyahu's office said on Thursday, with the focus likely to be on Middle East issues led by Syria. At the time, the Kremlin said Netanyahu and Putin were to discuss the situation in the Middle East, including Syria.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 12:38:47 -0500

The United States said Wednesday it would refuse to take back a US-born Islamic State propagandist who wants to return from Syria, saying that she is no longer a citizen. The refusal to admit 24-year-old Hoda Muthana could set precedent and face legal challenges as it is generally extremely difficult to lose US citizenship. "Ms. Hoda Muthana is not a US citizen and will not be admitted into the United States," Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said in a terse statement.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 14:21:29 -0500

President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday night told the annual meeting of Frances largest Jewish organization that a law could be presented in May in response to a recent spate of anti-Semitic incidents. There will be an obligation for results: if the content is not taken down then there will be a fine, and a large fine, Mahjoubi said on France Info radio.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 05:11:55 -0500

Plants on Earth have flourished for hundreds of millions of years, yet President Donald Trump's pick to lead his new climate team insists that they need more carbon dioxide to thrive. Princeton physicist and carbon dioxide-advocate William Happer has been selected to head the brand new Presidential Committee on Climate Security, reports
The Washington Post. The atomic scientist who achieved recognition for his work on atomic collisions and telescope optics, not climate science maintains that the planet's atmosphere needs significantly more CO2, the potent greenhouse gas that U.S. government scientists and a bevy of independent scientists have repeatedly underscored is stoking accelerating climate change. Because plants use carbon dioxide to live, Happer has said "more CO2 is actually a benefit to the Earth," asserted that Earth is experiencing a "CO2 famine," and concluded that "If plants could vote, they would vote for coal." Earth and plant scientists, however, find Happer's insistence that the plant kingdom would benefit from increased carbon dioxide wrong-headed and lacking evidence, at best. For reference, Earth's CO2 concentrations have skyrocketed in the last century, and are now at their highest levels in
at least 800,000 years though other measurements show CO2 levels are higher than they've been in 15 million years. "The idea that increased CO2 is universally beneficial [to plants] is very misguided," Jill Anderson, an evolutionary ecologist specializing in plant populations at the University of Georgia, said in an interview. Animation showing the evolution of global mean temperature vs. carbon dioxide concentration since 1850, now updated to include 2018.Though 2018 is a bit cooler than recent years, it still is one of the warmest years ever and lies close to the trend line of #GlobalWarming. pic.twitter.com/eK7zvUqWyT Robert Rohde (@RARohde) February 10, 2019 "It's a silly argument," added Britton Stephens, a senior scientist in the Earth Observing Laboratory at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, in an interview. Both independent academic institutions and government agencies around disparate parts of the globe have concluded more carbon dioxide will "bring many negative impacts" to plant environments, Stephens emphasized. "If someone is going to claim it's good, it's incumbent upon them to show evidence." Reached by email, Happer said he would like to chat about the benefits of carbon dioxide in the future, but such requests must now be sent through (and vetted) by the National Security Council (NSC). The NSC responded by saying that "At the moment, a discussion on this topic is not possible. If someone, like Happer, were to ignore uncomfortable realities like drought-ravaged crops, some of the deadliest wildfires on record, and the evaporating Colorado River, they could argue that some plants but not all plants could see growth benefits from amassing carbon dioxide concentrations. SEE ALSO: The Green New Deal: Historians weigh in on the immense scale required to pull it off "If we were to hold other environmental factors completely constant, some plants would do well, some plants would do worse, and some would outcompete other plants," said Anderson. But this is a reality that doesn't exist. "We know that CO2 isnt increasing in isolation," said Anderson. Eighteen of the last 19 years have been the warmest on record. Both wild plants and crops are experiencing increased flooding, heat waves, and pestilence. "CO2 does fertilize plants and by itself causes plants to grow faster, but unchecked CO2 release into the atmosphere will lead to reduced yields and the consequences could be catastrophic," Thomas Sharkey, a plant biochemist at Michigan State University, said over email. Baseball spring training starts this week.Predicting today whether CO2 in 2100 will be ~1000 ppm, or only half that, is like guessing who will play in the World Series in October.Nonetheless, the consequences of our CO2 emissions over the next few decades are profound. pic.twitter.com/pUf5VVlBAk Kris Karnauskas (@OceansClimateCU) February 19, 2019 Sharkey noted that pollen production which is necessary for making seeds is sensitive to even small increases in the average temperature. "The negatives far outweigh the positives," added Stephens. As might be evident to anyone alive on the planet, plants flourish today and have flourished for hundreds of millions of years, so Happer's suggestion that the planet's vegetation is in need of more carbon dioxide is bizarre. "Obviously plants were doing just fine historically," said Anderson. "Theres no indication plants are increasing their performance and doing better now than historically." A NASA graph showing skyrocketing CO2 levels. Image: nasa A recent NASA study found that Earth's overall greening over the last two decades which is to say the increase in area covered by green leaves is largely due to major tree planting programs and agricultural expansion in China and India. And some new regions of the planet are greening as the planet warms, like vast swaths of the northern tundra. But globally, the jury's still out on whether increased carbon dioxide is having a measurable influence on plant growth. "This is not a huge signal that everyone can see," said Stephens. There are extremely conspicuous climate signals, however, that everyone can see. One of the most widely-predicted consequences of a warming climate, stoked by historically-high carbon dioxide emissions, is increased fire weather. The California town of Paradise fell victim to profoundly dried-out vegetation and hot temperatures this past November. The forests had been turned to tinder, waiting to burn. Is more CO2 really good for plants? "Tell that to the trees in Paradise, California," said Stephens. WATCH: Ever wonder how the universe might end? Thu, 21 Feb 2019 19:26:28 -0500

When investors think of low-risk investments, they often think of utility stocks. When times get tough it's much easier to cut back on discretionary spending like travel or apparel than it is to materially reduce your energy use. Income investors are particularly drawn to energy utilities because consistent demand fuels consistent profits -- and regular dividends are the result.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 12:26:39 -0500

MUZAFFARABAD, Pakistan (AP) India halted a key bus service with the Pakistani-controlled part of Kashmir, cutting the only land route linking the divided Himalayan region, Pakistani and Indian officials said Wednesday.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 12:49:16 -0500

A Polish charity helping victims of child abuse committed by Catholic priests accused 24 bishops on Thursday of concealing perpetrators of sexual molestation of minors. The "Have No Fear" charity made the allegation in a report released as Pope Francis convened Catholic leaders from around the world to address scandals over child sexual abuse by priests that have ravaged the Church's credibility over the last three decades. The report, which has been delivered to the pope, named Polish bishops whom it said had "concealed clerical crimes and moved pedophilic priests from one parish to another".Thu, 21 Feb 2019 12:00:00 -0500

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said Wednesday he would not accept partial payment of tax transfers owed by Israel, which decided to withhold reimbursements in retaliation for payments to prisoners jailed for attacks. "We shall not accept the (tax) money if it is not paid in full," Abbas told a central committee of the Palestine Liberation Organisation in Ramallah in the occupied West Bank. Israel's security cabinet on Sunday approved the freezing of $138 million (122 million euros) over the Palestinian Authority's payments to prisoners jailed for attacks on Israelis.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 12:02:30 -0500

An Internal Revenue Service analyst was charged Thursday with leaking confidential reports that revealed President Trump's former personal attorney Michael Cohen sought to profit from his White House access.The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California charged analyst John Fry for leaking a suspicious activity report (SAR) to Michael Avenatti, the attorney who represented pornographer Stormy Daniels in her defamation case against President Trump.Avenatti published the SAR on Twitter last May, revealing to the public that Cohen set up a shell company known as Essential Consultants in order to collect payments from a number of corporations hoping to influence Trump administration policy. Cohen used the same shell company to make a $130,000 hush money payment to Daniels.During the Trump campaign and transition period, Cohen received hundreds of thousands of dollars from corporations, including Korea Aerospace Industries, AT&T, and Columbus Nova, a New York affiliate of the Russian corporation Renova Group which is owned by a Russian oligarch who donated to Trump's campaign and has been sanctioned by the U.S.According to the indictment filed Thursday, Avenatti also shared Fry's information with the New Yorker's Ronan Farrow.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 16:32:39 -0500

A winter storm bore down on the U.S. East Coast on Wednesday, threatening to snarl New York City's evening commute after hindering air travel along the East Coast and prompting the shutdown of federal offices in Washington. Snow turning to sleet slickened roadways in the New York metropolitan area by the early afternoon and was blamed for a rash of fender benders and traffic jams. The widespread weather system piled as much as 6 inches (15 cm) of snow across the Washington area before turning to sleet, said meteorologist Bryan Jackson of the National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center in College Park, Maryland.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 15:12:15 -0500

Hot on the heels of Benetton, which opened Milan Fashion Week Tuesday, February 20, fashion houses Gucci,Alberto Zambelli, Annakiki, Alberta Ferretti and Moncler showed their fall/winter 2019-2020 collections in the Italian city. This first official day reiterated certain trends spotted in New York and London with some colorful displays, notably at Byblos and Annakiki, mixing bright shades and prints, as well as at Gucci. Like in London and New York, plays on volume and proportion -- especially with outerwear designs -- were also on the agenda in Milan, with several extravagant pieces covered with frills and furbelows.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 06:59:30 -0500

CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) Jhonny Godoy had taken to Twitter to proclaim his opposition to President Nicolas Maduro, posting a video that showed him running through the streets waving the national flag as protests erupted across Venezuela's capital.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 17:49:00 -0500

A deadly car bombing claimed by the Islamic State group hit US-backed forces in eastern Syria on Thursday as they tried to negotiate the release of civilians trapped in the jihadists' last sliver of territory. The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are working towards evacuating civilians remaining in the holdout, so they can finish off the dying IS "caliphate" either through an assault or a surrender deal. The jihadists overran large parts of Syria and neighbouring Iraq in 2014, but several offensives have retaken all but half a square kilometre (a fifth of a square mile) of their territory in the eastern Syrian village of Baghouz.Thu, 21 Feb 2019 20:49:43 -0500

The defamation lawsuit filed on behalf of Covington Catholic High School student Nick Sandmann alleges the teen has suffered permanent harm to his reputation as a result of the paper's malice; Doug McKelway reports.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 10:37:55 -0500

Butswinkas, who joined Tesla in December and was reporting to Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk, will return to his previous role as the company's outside counsel at law firm Williams & Connolly. Jonathan Chang, Tesla's vice president of legal department, will replace Butswinkas effective immediately, the company said in an email statement to Reuters. Before joining Tesla in 2011, Chang was its outside counsel at law firm Latham & Watkins.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 11:51:14 -0500

The visit will include a meeting with President Xi Jinping and a high-level joint dialogue aimed at boosting relations after the nations agreed to promote a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2016. China overtook the U.S. as the kingdoms biggest trading partner in 2013. The worlds most populous nation accounted for about 15 percent of all Saudi imports and exports last year compared with 8 percent a decade earlier, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 19:52:10 -0500

DENVER (AP) After months of mostly silence from authorities investigating the disappearance of a Colorado mother on Thanksgiving Day, grim details about her suspected demise emerged this week, including accusations that the woman's fiance beat her to death with a baseball bat while their baby was in the next room.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 14:29:37 -0500

Warehouse clubs such as Sam's Club, Costco and BJ's Wholesale Club are marketed to consumers as great places to find bargains on all kinds of goods, particularly items sold in bulk. Many discount grocers offer comparable prices on the goods you can find at a warehouse club. For most customers, there are three major areas that will provide enough savings throughout the year to pay for a warehouse club membership.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 10:20:41 -0500

The Home Office has stripped jihadi bride Shamima Begum of her British citizenship, but the ongoing saga of what will happen next to her and her days-old son remains up in the air. International law forbids nations from making people stateless by revoking their only citizenship, prompting speculation that Begum held dual citizenship through her Bangladeshi parents. On Wednesday morning, Begum's lawyer Tasnime Akunjee said his client does not have dual nationality, but the Home Office told The Telegraph laws in Bangladesh means the teenager automatically retains dual citizenship until she is 21. Her family say they will consider "all legal avenues to challenge this decision", and Begum herself said that she may think about trying to travel with her terrorist husband to his home country of Holland to claim citizenship there. Thecase has prompted fresh discussions over how Britain manages those returning or attempting to come back from Syria, once gripped by the tyranny of Islamic State (Isil). Begumwas one of three schoolgirls, along with Kadiza Sultana and Amira Abase, from Bethnal Green Academy who left the UK in February 2015. She married an Isil fighter and on Sunday have birth to her third childat a refugee camp in northeastern Syria. Her first two children died.Begum's family has pleaded for the 19-year-old to be shown mercy and to be allowed to return to east London. But what options do authorities have in such instances? Remain in Syria If Begum is not repatriated, the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) could hand her over to neighbouring Iraqi forces, Middle East Correspondent Josie Ensor explains. The Telegraph is aware of at least three cases, including European citizens, where male Isil suspects have been transferred from Syria to Iraq to face trial. This would be a controversial option as Baghdad has the option to impose the death penalty, which the UK opposes. Foreign detainees are currently being held by the SDF in an area of Kurdish self-rule in northeastern Syria. The SDF has said that they do not have the money or resources to hold them forever. Islamic State losing its grip on Syria They have warned that if Turkey invades, which it has threatened, it could see the prisoners being set free in the chaos. The Syrian Kurds are also in talks with the Syrian government about ceding some of their territory, which could see some foreign prisoners being handed over to the regime. A third option - Mustafa Bali, the SDF spokesman, has called for an international court to be set up in Syria. This would see them tried by international judges in Syria but return home to serve their sentence. However, sources at the UN say it would be difficult if not impossible to set up such a court in Kurdish-held territory without the authority of the Syrian government. Bangladesh dual citizenship The Telegraph understands that the Home Office made the decision to revoke Begum's British citizenship based on Bangladeshi law. There, until the age of 21, it is understoodthe Isil bride automatically retains dual nationality due to the fact her parents are both from the country. At the age of 21, a child born to Bangladeshi parents has the right to waive their right to dual nationality, but not before. The complication lies in how she gets to Bangladesh - where it is understood her father is currently living -and how she proves that she is Shamima Begum. The teenager has never visited the country and does not have a Bangladeshi passport. Her old British passport is invalid due to her citizenship being revoked and she has previously said she used her sister's passport to travel to Syria back in 2015. One possible option for her would beto travel to Turkey via the notoriously penetrable border with Syria and present herself to the Bangladeshi embassy. But officials in Dhaka may well appeal the Home Office's decision to make Begum their responsibility, insisting that she has never even been to the country. Attemptto gain Dutch citizenship Begum married Isil fighterYago Riedjik in Syria having travelled to the Middle East from Bethnal Green in east London in 2015. His whereabouts are still unknown, but when asked what she might do next, the Isil bridetold ITV News:"Another option I might try with my family is my husband is from Holland and he has family in Holland. "Maybe I can ask for citizenship in Holland. If he gets sent back to prison in Holland I can just wait for him while he is in prison." This would need a number of elements to align for it to even be a possibility. First, Holland would have to accept to take Riedjik back, having left the country to become a terrorist in the Middle East. Yago Reidjik The country doesn't offer to help its citizens in Syria who are willing to return, and if they report to an embassy, they would be transported to Holland, arrested and prosecuted. A foreigh fighter with dual nationalities deemed a threat to national security - like Britain - can have their Dutch citizenship and passport revoked. If that happens, Begum would have to follow him. But her British passport is - as it stands - invalid. And she previously said she had travelled to Syria on her sister's passport, which has since been taken from her. Dutch legislation dictates that a spouse or partner wishing to live in Holland would need a residence permit, and in order to be eligible for a permit - they must have a valid passport or other travel documents. Somehow, if she manages to make the 2,000-mile journey from Syria to Holland,the Dutch authorities would have to accept that she and Riedjik are married. The pair were wedwithin the confines of Islamic State a matter ofweeks after shearrived. It is highly unlikely there is paperwork to prove they are legally married, and even if there is, the Dutch authorities would have to accept it as binding. Home Office decision is rescinded As the Home Office's letter states, Shamima Begum and her family have the right to appeal the decision. Her lawyer Tasnima Akunjee's rhetoric all along suggests he will help his client fight any move to strip her of her British citizenship. The letter to the Begum family Credit: ITV News If judges side with Begum, deciding Sajid Javid had no right to revoke her British citizenship because it renders her stateless - the Government would be back to square one. The appeal might not necessarily need to happen. If, as Begum's lawyer suggests, the Isil bride is currently stateless - the Home Office would be forced to reverse it stance. In that scenario, all these options are once again back on the table. Sent to Guantnamo Bay As revealed by Ben Riley-Smith, Robert Mendick and Laura Fitzpatrickon The Telegraph's front page on Friday, theUnited States is planning to send BritishIsilfighters to Guantnamo Bay amid frustration at the UK's failure to take responsibility for its homegrown terrorists. Senior US officials believe Guantnamo can house more than 50 Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant fighters, including the two surviving British members of the so-called "Beatles" terrorist cell that executed Western hostages. It has emerged that the vast majority of Islamist fighters returning to the UK from Syria have been placed on "secretive" government rehabilitation schemes rather than prosecuted. Despite British concern, Guantnamo Bay is being readied in the run-up to Donald Trump's withdrawal of US troops from Syria as soon as April. There is acute frustration within the Trump administration over how Britain and other western European countries are refusing to take back their foreign fighters for prosecution in their own courts. Returning jihadis: What other countries do Arrest and prosecution Home Secretary Sajid Javid previously said those who make it back "should be ready to be questioned, investigated and potentially prosecuted". But authorities have faced difficulties obtaining evidence to prove someone committed crimes in Syria. Most recently, The Isil Beatles have caused theGovernment enormous problems. Two of the foursuspected terrorists' fate has been left in limbo as the UK and the US play tug-of-war with where they will end up in court. The Home Office previously blocked their return, andthey could end up in an American federal court facing the death penalty after the CPS said there was "insufficient evidence" for them to be tried in the UK. uk drops opposing of death pen Figures disclosed in the Commons last year suggested that only around one in 10 returnees has been prosecuted over "direct action" in Syria, although ministers say a significant proportion of those who have come back were assessed as no longer being of national security concern. New legislation which passed lastweek made it an offence to enter or remain in overseas terror hotspots, officially termed "designated areas". Managed return to UK Powers known as temporary exclusion orders (TEOs) were introduced in 2015. They can last for up to two years and can be imposed on those suspected of involvement in terrorism abroad, making it unlawful for them to return to the UK without engaging with authorities. The powers were unused in 2016, while nine TEOs were issued in 2017. Isil schoolgirls' journey into Syria TPIMs Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures (TPIMs) allow the Home Secretary to impose a range of disruptive measures on individuals who are suspected of posing a threat to security but who cannot be prosecuted, or, in the case of foreign nationals, deported. Restrictions can include relocation to another part of the country, electronic monitoring and limits on the use of phones and computers. As of the end of August, six TPIMs were in force. Deradicalisation back in Britain Returnees could be referred to the Government's 40 million a year Prevent programme, which aims to stop people being drawn into terrorism. There were 7,318 individuals referred to Prevent in 2017/18. The schoolgirl who turned to Isil In most cases, referrals are found to require no further action or passed to other services, but when authorities conclude there is a danger the person could be drawn into terrorism, they can be supported through a voluntary scheme known as Channel. Prevent is backed by ministers and police, but has been described as "toxic" by critics, and the Government announced earlier this year that it would be independently reviewed.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 10:29:41 -0500

Karl Lagerfeld will be cremated without ceremony and his ashes are likely to be scattered with those of his mother and lover, his label said Wednesday. "His wishes will be respected," a spokeswoman for his Karl Lagerfeld brand told AFP a day after the legendary designer died at the age of 85. Lagerfeld had previously said that his ashes would be mixed with those of his longtime lover, the French dandy Jacques de Bascher, who died of AIDS in 1989.Wed, 20 Feb 2019 09:05:01 -0500